While riding in the saddle, an equestrian rider typically experiences a repetitive motion that creates friction between the saddle and the rider. Moreover, an equestrian rider often exerts pressure on her inner legs and knees to control the horse and maintain stability in the saddle. As a result of this friction and pressure, the skin on the legs and bottom of an equestrian rider can become irritated or chafed.
For this reason, horseback riders typically wear some type of equestrian pants while riding. Equestrian pants are usually designed to provide a durable, protective surface between the rider and the saddle. Some of the known equestrian pants are manufactured from a stretchable, synthetic material that stretches around the rider's legs and lower torso. Equestrian pants of this nature are referred to as riding breeches or tights. Some of the known equestrian pants also include an additional protective surface attached to the exterior surface of the pants. The protective surface provides added durability to the pants and typically is made of a material that helps prevent the rider from slipping in the saddle. The protective surface may be in the form of a full-seat patch, which extends along the entire backside of the rider, or separate knee patches, which are positioned on the inward-facing sides of the rider's knees.
Some of the known riding pants are constructed from four panels of fabric, which are attached at a central crotch seam, an outseam, and an inseam. This construction suffers from a number of disadvantages. For instance, the inseam typically makes direct contact with the saddle when the pants are worn by a rider, creating a major point of friction and abrasion. Further, the outseam is typically located adjacent to areas of the rider's body that are susceptible to irritation. In particular, the outseam is usually positioned adjacent to the rider's hipbones and upper ends of the femur. These areas protrude slightly and are easily irritated by constant friction imparted by the adjacent outseam.
Other known riding pants are constructed from two panels connected at two outseams—one on each leg of the pants. This construction similarly suffers from the disadvantage of having the outseam located at a position on the rider's body susceptible to irritation. Further, the use of only two panels and a single outseam limits the degree to which the pants can be shaped or preformed to the body of the rider.
The pant legs of the known riding pants are typically not shaped in any way unique to equestrian riding. Instead, the typical pant leg is shaped to extend in a straight line from the upper thigh of the rider to the ankle (i.e., in the shape of a straightened leg). As a result, these pants fit best when the rider is standing and tend to limit the range of motion of the rider while riding. When a rider's legs are bent and spread slightly, as they are when riding in a saddle, the pants tend to bunch or crease. For instance, the knee, upper-thigh, crotch, and waist regions of the rider tend to bunch or crease when the rider is in a riding position. This bunching creates additional points of friction that abrade the rider's skin and create an uncomfortable fit. Further, the known riding pants that are shaped have only a single outseam on each leg and include only minimal curving at a knee region of the pants.